For The Happiness You Lost
by xxbe-dazzledxx
Summary: Fairy Tail never backed out on their words and when they told you they would help, they certainly would. Even if it's not exactly what you asked for.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Fairy Tail, its characters and in no way associated to the franchise. Any circumstances found in this story are fictional. Fairy Tail rights reserved to Hiro Mashima, creator and illustrator.

Don't forget to leave reviews!

* * *

**For the Happiness You Lost **Part 1

* * *

Erza just walked in at the merriment in the guild. It wasn't' t really an unusual scene for her. She used to come home in this kind of atmosphere and that's how it felt – _home_. The new blonde recruit trailed behind her, watching the sway of her hips and secretly enjoying the occasional glimpse of her long and silky legs that her brisk movements gave away. Hey, he's a guy and no matter how much he hated the Scarlet's guts, that didn't mean he would pass on to a free sexy show, even if those legs belonged to the monster – Erza Scarlet.

"Welcome back, Knight-sama."

He turned around to witness the knee-weakening smile his bluenette comrade offered him. There was a warm feeling that spread on his chest hearing Juvia's greetings. He needed it after five torturing days with the S-Class mage. It was Master Makarov's idea to send him with the red head on a very easy mission in his opinion. He said he needed to know how Fairy Tail mages work on jobs and who was he to turn the master down when the old man was so generous to lend him a home? Besides, he thought he got the hang of things watching Erza Scarlet destroy half of the town.

"How was the mission?"

"Okay, I guess."

Considering they only lost half of the reward money for restitution. He ought to add but Knight van Cartier wasn't the friendly kind. Since he was younger, he never easily warmed up to people. Exactly the reason why the easy job talk them five days to finish. He spent more than half the time bickering with the hot headed Requip mage. And he wasn't blessed with a long and impairing tolerance. Heavenly body? Yes. Patience? Nah. His pretty face made up for it though.

"Hey, the new guy is here!"

Cana hanged an arm around his shoulders. She was too close that Knight could smell her reek of alcohol. His brows knitted into a frown. He brushed off her arm and Cana, without Knight's body as a support, came crashing on the floor, face first. His pretty face made up for his ugly attitude too. Knight had issues.

The blonde mage walked around the guild to look for Juvia. Even if he wasn't friendly towards her, he liked her presence. Only around her that he felt at peace and for the past few weeks he looked forward for her company. But the almost curve on his lips he called a smile quickly dropped when he found her gawking at the half-naked ice mage.

"Knight."

When he turned around he found the master staring straight at him. He wasn't sure if he was sitting or already standing. It didn't make any difference to him. Erza was beside the old man. She probably reported to the master how the five days went downhill. He was sure he was going to get a scolding. Instead, Makarov held up a paper to him. He stared at it for a moment before realizing he was giving him a new job.

"This one wouldn't take you five days to finish."

Although he knew the old man meant well, Knight couldn't help the pinch in his heart with the master's comment. Knight was a smart person, smarter than anyone. His memory was sharp, sharper than anyone too. In fact, if he got a proper training, he could beat Rufus with his own memory magic. But Knight's real magic was summoning demons. Not like Mira's. He didn't get possessed. It was more of Lucy's alley. Knight didn't use keys but he could call on them at will. Currently, he had five demons under his command. He would use them all to finish the mission in no time. He really has to step up his game.

"Erza will be coming with you too."

"She will just slow me down, master."

"Excuse me?"

Just like that. Knight managed to bring out the monster in Erza. The two engaged in a very loud and heated argument even Gray and Natsu stopped fighting for a moment.

* * *

Knight stared at the train window, his arm propped below his chin, and his face was contorted in a very gorgeous frown. He managed to appreciate the scenery despite the constant nagging of his stupid brain. It kept reminding him of his apparent situation. Across him was Titania, ignoring his existence. Probably the best idea she ever had. He looked back on the argument they had this morning and decided to bury it deep at the back of his mind. He finally came to terms with the fact that he couldn't get rid of Erza Scarlet until he proved himself to master Makarov and well, to the woman herself.

The blonde mage's head jerked back to the announcement of their arrival to Ambrosia. Erza stirred and prepared to gather her things.

The job was easy and the pay was just right. The mission was to rid the town of an old woman terrorizing it. They both walked the distance to where the townspeople said they saw the culprit. She was old, what could she probably do? Knight looked behind and saw Erza's cart jump and wobble on the rocky ground. Why she was bringing a cart of luggage which looked like owned by thirty people was beyond him. He never dared to ask because a conversation with the S-Class mage would just end up in an over-rated argument. He had enough arguments with this woman. They never resulted to anything productive.

"Hello there!"

Erza pointed her sharp sword on the owner of the old and shaky voice.

"Who are you and why are you here? Answer me!"

Knight shook his head in utter disbelief and embarrassment. Erza would take this whole situation too far, like she always did. She wouldn't even let the woman talk. He watched as the Requip mage terrorized the old woman, her legs were shaking and she stuttered as the mage pressed the sharp end on the old woman's face.

Knight took the initiative and pushed Erza's sword lower.

"Why don't you let her talk?"

Erza obliged and disarmed herself.

"Well..."

The accused started when it immediately hit him. Knight took out the job request and recognized that the old woman in the photo and the one in front of them were the same person.

"You're the monster terrorizing this town?"

"Well, that... That's just a misunderstanding."

* * *

Erza was so surprised to hear her story. In order to avoid or at least minimize any unnecessary damages – courtesy of the red head – Knight decided to take the two women to the town's famous bar. The trio made some heads turn. In his opinion, it was because of the Requip mage's reputation and nothing to do with the old woman they came with. They sat on a four-person booth and the oldest of the group relayed her story to them. Apparently, Erza knew her.

"Ultear… I… I don't know how to thank you."

Erza couldn't look her straight in the eyes. Knight didn't understand. He wasn't there when it happened but she was. The old-aged Ultear smiled sweetly at her, reassuring her.

"Is there any way to reverse it?" Erza inquired.

"I'm afraid not."

The old woman's voice was laced with sadness. From the tone of her voice, Knight could say that she was lonely – _very lonely_. Just like him.

"That's not true. There's always a way." He butted in nonchalantly.

The two women turned to him, surprised. It was Erza who spoke first.

"And you know how to reverse it?"

Knight glared at his camarade frank, totally repulsed with the sticky glaze laced on his fingers.

"So?"

Erza was an impatient woman. He should know that.

"Ambrosia has the oldest archive of magic books. The answer might be in there."

"That's right!"

Erza slammed her hands on the table. The patrons of the bar turned to their booth in shock and horror. The owner stepped forward to handle the situation but Knight dismissed him.

"Why didn't I think of that?" She continued.

"Because you don't usually think before you act?"

Snap. They were at it again. The owner had to throw them out before the two started a riot and Ultear cried over the sumptuous meal she never got to finish.

Erza looked around. She forgot how tall the shelves and how many books were housed in this archive. Just staring at it gave her nausea.

"How are we gonna find the book?"

"They're categorized, you idiot."

Erza was ready to pounce on him. She decided she would get him good, once and for all. Ultear, sensing the Scarlet's plan, put herself between the two before they started a fuss and be thrown out again. As much as she wanted to rid herself of this mess, apparently the blonde could be the only one willing to help her.

Knight walked away from the mad red-head and went towards the Lost Magic section. Both the women followed behind him silently looking around like tourists.

* * *

Books spread around Knight's circle. He was a natural fast reader and just skimmed the books for the answer he's been looking for. It's already dark outside and he wasn't planning on stopping until he found it. He was already on his 413th book while Erza struggled on her fifth.

He sighed. No matter how many times he told her to just scan it, the hard-headed Erza read it, word per word. She believed if she just 'scanned' it – putting some kind of a quote on the word – she could miss out something important. He sighed again. The blonde checked on her over the book he was currently holding. Erza's brows were knitted to an eager frown. Her eyes moved along the line and her lips were pursed to a pout.

Knight came to a horrifying realization that Erza Scarlet was actually cute. He panicked when the red-head lifted her gaze and caught him staring. He immediately covered his reddened face with the book.

He set aside the book and opened a new one. He focused his full concentration on the paragraph that caught his attention. _Time Arc. Manipulate. Lost Time. Reverse._ With every word his hope blossomed.

"I found it!"

His announcement woke the tired and sleepy Ultear. They weren't sure, even the old woman, when exactly she dozed off. But now she was full of energy in finding out that she might just regain her youthfulness.

* * *

Author's Note

* * *

So I got stuck in my other story, The Vampire Tales. And this plot has been bugging me for days. I didn't like what happened to Ultear and I think she didn't deserve it. She did pretty nasty things but I love her and I want her to have another chance. So let me know what you think. And yes guys, this isn't mainly Gruvia but they are here! And what was I thinking putting Knight in here right? I love my little blonde so let it go. hahaha.

Let's see if you could spot the GRUVIA related hints I put on this chapter. See you!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Fairy Tail, its characters and in no way associated to the franchise. Any circumstances found in this story are fictional. Fairy Tail rights reserved to Hiro Mashima, creator and illustrator.

Don't forget to leave reviews!

* * *

**For the Happiness You Lost **Part 2

* * *

**PREVIOUSLY:**

Fairy Tail's newest recruit received a new job to rid a town of a terrifying entity. The terrifying entity turned out to be an old woman and the old woman turned out to be the Time Arc mage Ultear. Knight van Cartier enlisted himself to help the woman.

* * *

The sun ran on its usual course and Knight rose with it. The first thing he did that morning was gathered the women on the clearing and prepared for the spell reversal. The only person Erza knew that uses the time arc was the same woman they were trying to help so as much as she regretted it, she put all her hopes to the absolutely annoying new guy.

Ultear gave up her life to save many. That one act of kindness found a spot on the blonde mage's ice cold heart. He found himself, not only willing, but eager to give her back the time she lost.

Knight called on all his magic ability. He closed his eyes to concentrate then a glowing aura enveloped him fully. His lids flung open with a new determination shining in his ocean blue orbs. He waved his hands and stroked the kanji on the air to begin the spell.

"Lost Magic!"

He raised his voice, announcing it to the world. Erza and Ultear waited in anticipation. The two women prayed hard that it would become fruitful.

"Time _Re_-"

He was about to finish the magic spell when it hit him. The golden aura around him grew thin. He dropped his hands to his sides.

"-_I_ can't do it."

"What do you mean? You're doing great. Just finish the spell."

Erza encouraged him but the aura around him flickered out totally.

"You said you did this spell to turn back time, right?" He turned to Ultear.

"Then if I reverse the spell, what should have happened that day will carry out. The aftermath of those events will take over." He explained.

"Those people who should have _died_-"

"-_will_ die."

Erza finished in a small voice. She could now fully understand the effects of what would happen if they continued finishing the spell. Ultear's face was stricken by a sadness that almost broke Knight. All her hope vanished just as quickly as she gained them.

The red-head stared at her and the deaths that took place that day flashed before her eyes. It wasn't a long time ago when it happened and even if she had decided to bury those memories at the back of her mind, what she thought was a nightmare now felt so real. She couldn't breathe all of the sudden. She felt like someone was clutching her heart. Erza turned away to let the tears out.

"Then I don't want it."

She wiped the tears and spun around to look at Ultear. She couldn't understand the smile the old woman had on.

"I don't regret what I have done."

The old woman struggled to get up from the giant rock she was resting on. When she managed to get on her feet, she gazed up and stared at the sky.

"I saved him. I gave Gray another chance to live. I wouldn't take it back."

Erza never felt helpless in her entire life. She hated how her tears flow like a river in front of her sworn enemy. And she hated it more that Knight was void of any emotions. He just stared blankly at her. _He wouldn't understand. _She told herself. _He wasn't there._

Knight walked towards her. His face gradually contorted into anger.

"Stop it." He gritted.

"We told her we will help her, didn't we?"

"Young man, it's alright."

Ultear placed a hand on his broad shoulder.

"I told you I didn't want it."

Knight turned away from the two women and rushed back to the archive.

"Just give me more time." (No pun intended.)

Knight declared without so much as a glance back to the wondering women. At the archive's door he stopped for a moment and shouted back at Ultear.

"We are Fairy Tail. And we honor our words."

Then, he disappeared behind the huge pairs of door.

* * *

They stepped out the clearing again, afraid to bring about havoc in the library when he finally release the spell. Master Makarov has been fussing about Team Natsu's bills for the last few weeks. It ain't pretty. And he loved the place. It has been his home before Fairy Tail.

Knight dropped the book on the ground and called upon his magic again. This time they will succeed for sure. He spent the whole day trying to figure out how to bring back Ultear's youthfulness without warping the balance of the current time. One wrong move and they would ripple out of proportions. The Butterfly Effect – that's another problem they didn't need to have.

"And you're sure this won't undo the effects of the spell?"

The old woman worriedly inquired.

Knight explained to them that he was only replicating what she did for the mages in Fiore. The two women protested.

"The spell requires the caster's own time. I wouldn't let you."

He smirked. Why did people always underestimate his abilities? Last night, he remembered how Mira could summon her demon souls and let them take-over her body. Knight never tried it but it was the only way to carry out the spell without requiring him to sacrifice himself. He spent the whole night practicing the take-over magic.

"I wouldn't have to. Even if the take-over magic didn't work well, I found another way."

He turned to Erza to rub his win on her face.

"I told you. There's always another way."

Erza knew better to let the bastard enjoy his little moment. He was the one who came up with the answer, after all. As much as she hated to admit, she was useless to him. And as much as she wanted to wipe off that smug on his annoying pretty face, he deserved the win.

Knight fell on his summoning stance. The Requip mage has witnessed it before but each time it amused her. A strong whirlpool of enormous magic surrounded him. The ground below him shook while a glowing line encircled the demon-summoner. He emitted a forceful aura that made even Erza grasp on something to stay on her ground.

"I call upon the demon of a thousand faces, Imitre!"

Imitre was a purple haired girl who looked years younger than Wendy, almost same age as Bisca's daughter. Erza met her before. She remembered how the innocent little girl almost killed her with her own Requip magic.

"Hello, Knight-sama."

Ultear has never seen a demon as sweet and lovely as she was. Although she was wearing dark clothing, the sweet smile could fool anyone. It fooled Natsu once and Lucy too.

"We meet again, Titania."

The old woman was surprised to see the sudden change in the atmosphere. The sweet little girl turned into a murderous monster when she spotted the Requip mage. Her deadly glare seemed to have no effect on the other woman though.

"Imitre could copy any form of magic. She will be the one to cast the spell."

"That's right, Knight-sama."

It always amused Erza how he managed to smile at his demons and not to actual humans. She saw the bond he shared with them, like Lucy's.

"You said you used the Last Ages spell, right? That rewinds the time of the entire world?"

He confirmed from Ultear and the latter nodded in response.

"Imitre, is there any way we could concentrate the spell on one person alone?"

"You have read it in the books, haven't you Knight-sama?"

"Well, yeah. But I only know it by theory, I've… I've never actually done it."

The smug on his face was replaced by a scarlet shade of red. Elfman said admitting to the truth, no matter how embarrassing, was a manly thing to do. And so he did. Imitre walked towards him and patted his shoulders. When, Knight turned to her, she had her hands laced behind her back and her lips were curved into a smile.

"It would be enough Knight-sama. Let's just do our best. It will require a lot of your magic but I know Knight-sama can do it."

"Okay then. Let's begin."

The two women were puzzled at the deep relationship between this human and the demon. Everything they thought they knew about these cruel creatures flown out the window. Knight van Cartier and his demons were really something.

Knight placed a magical sphere around Imitre and Ultear. This would trap the effects of the spell only within the sphere. But he had to hold this magical wall until the whole ministration was over or else they would turn back time for whole Earthland. Not to mention that with the advancement of the spell, he might need to lend his magic supply to the young demon to successfully carry it out.

Erza saw Knight wobbled a little. She stepped forward to catch him in case he collapsed but the demon-summoner recovered immediately. Nobody else seemed to notice so they continued.

"Time Arc: Age Freeze!"

The entire planet stood still. Eathland inhabitants became like mannequins displayed in a daily life scene. True to the spell's name, everyone and everything actually froze – both living and non-living. Knight checked on Erza to confirm the spell's effect. The Requip mage was still as a rock. He then turned to his demon and urged her to continue.

Since Knight was the caster of the time freeze spell, it had no effect on him. And since Imitre and Ultear were bounded in the magic sphere, the last ages would not reach him. Ensuring her master's safety, the young demon began the spell.

* * *

Erza blindly waved her hands to touch something, _anything_. She can't see through the thick white smoke that surrounded her. She didn't know where she was but she hoped she was still standing on a safe ground. When she checked her feet, there was only endless white.

"Knight!"

She called out. The Requip mage decided not to move or she might not have another ground to stand on. For all she knew, she might just be balancing herself on the edge a thin pillar. There was no way to find out with behind the thick white smog.

"Knight!"

She called again. Erza squinted to focus her vision on an unclear form of a man and a woman the height of Wendy. Thank goodness the smog dispersed faster and grown thinner. They were still outside the clearing near the archives. She could now make out the green pasture and the tall old building.

"Knight."

She ran towards the two figures and to her surprise, the girl standing beside Knight resembled the young demon – horrifyingly resembled Imitre.

"So the spell actually worked? But where is Ultear?"

The three heads looked around everywhere, shouting and searching for the time-arc mage. Their feet didn't take them far when they heard a noise coming from somewhere. They followed the sound and their hurried steps faltered into hesitant strides when the indistinct noise grew louder and it started to sound like a discordant cry.

"Is that a…"

And their suspicions were confirmed when the thick white smoke finally cleared out and they found Ultear's clothing abandoned on the ground. Beneath it was unmistakably a little life.

Oh the horror on Knight's ocean eyes and Erza's chocolate ones.

"Ah… a… a baby?"

A cracked voice fell out of both lips.

* * *

Author's Note

* * *

I'd like to thank **TanaSoho, mgaa **and **Guest** for the review. I hope you guys see this through til the end.

Also, I'm brewing something for Christmas. Hope you guys will look forward to it.

To **TanaSoho,**

I agree that they should have at least shown what happened to her and what's she doing now. But I think Hiro did that as Ultear's ultimate redemption. I just hope he does something more for Ultear.

To **mgaa**,

Girl! Nakwento ko na sa iyo. hahaha. Sana okay ka lang diyan sa inyo.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Fairy Tail, its characters and in no way associated to the franchise. Any circumstances found in this story are fictional. Fairy Tail rights reserved to Hiro Mashima, creator and illustrator.

Don't forget to leave reviews!

NOTE: _ITALIZED _paragraph is a flashback.

* * *

**For the Happiness You Lost **Part 3

* * *

**PREVIOUSLY:**

Knight Van Cartier, Fairy Tail's resident demon-summoner finally found the answer to Ultear's problem. Knight summoned Imitre, a sweet young demon with an appearance of a little girl. With her help, they were able to replicate the Lost Ages spell Ultear used to turn back time. But it seems Ultear got more than what she have bargained for.

* * *

Knight van Cartier, one of the only few mages who successfully carried out a very advanced spell with no experience at all, stood there dumbfounded. For the first time in his life he was at loss for any explanations or answers and not even the proclaimed Queen of the Fairies could offer him one too.

Imitre picked up the discarded dress on the floor and none of the trio was ready for what laid underneath it – _a baby_ – a breathing, wailing, human child. At first, they were paralyzed; their mouths hanged open out of shock. Then they panicked, running around in circles like a bunch of crazy monkeys, and when they got tired of doing nothing productive, Knight, Erza and Imitre finally decided to deal with their little bundle of problem. The requip mage picked little Ultear off the ground and cradled her small body in her arms like how she saw other women with children did.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Knight eyed the woman suspiciously as the latter rocked little Ultear gently against her chest. He never trusted Erza Scarlet's sense of motherhood. Yes, the S-class mage's competitive side brought the best out of her but also the worst. So, Erza with an actual, living baby? The demon-summoner sighed. The monstrous woman had that look, same look she made when she was about to end the lives of her stubborn opponents who just wouldn't die. But the smug on her face was starting to break. Her perfect way of calming the baby down wasn't working, which totally confused her because as we all know in Erza's mind everything always worked.

"Why isn't she stopping?!"

She started to panic, rocking the poor baby recklessly now. It scared and repulsed the demon-summoning mage.

"Uhmmm... Erza. I don't think that's how you do it."

Luckily, Erza did heed his opinion but as the two young mages were both inexperienced when it came to parenting, they once again stood rooted on the ground, no idea at all on what to do. Ultear's crying became louder, echoing through-out the deserted forest.

"Titania..." Imitre joined in, a hint of taunting in her voice. "Don't you think your armor is a little hard for the baby?" She talked to Erza in a slow pace, making sure the idea and her gloating about it sunk in and when it did, Erza's face lit up in realization.

"Of course!"

She quickly change into her purple dress which proved ineffective when the baby was silent for a moment then continued crying in her arms again. Erza narrowed her eyes on Imitre. The younger woman sheepishly smiled in response, glooming over her defeat. She promised herself not to let Titania score over her again in front of Knight-sama. To redeem herself, she threw in another suggestion.

"Maybe she's hungry."

Erza gave it a good thought before she adjusted the baby in her arms and tugged down the cloth that covered her chest area. Knight stopped her before she did anything stupid like exposing the man her full breasts.

"Ahmmm..." He stuttered. He placed a hand over his thundering chest to calm his erratic heartbeat. "A-A-Are you sure th-that's a go-good idea?" (Ooooh, he felt a nosebleed coming on.)

Sure, he got a glimpse of the requip mage's generous cleavage, sometimes deeper south, more than he would want to admit but he wasn't sure if he was ready to see the full mounds. He couldn't handle the stimulation. His whole body was already reacting weirdly to the idea, how much more actually seeing it?

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!" It was exactly what Knight was thinking but the words didn't escape his lips. It came from the scandalized young demon standing behind the scarlet-haired mage. Imitre stomped towards her, not taking off the murderous glare she was sending Erza's way.

"You can't just do that in front of Knight-sama! I'll do it."

The young demon grabbed the baby from Erza's arms. However, before she could make a repeat of Erza's unconsidered action earlier, a loud thud made both heads turn towards the demon-summoner who was now lying on the ground, unconscious.

"Knight!"

"Knight-sama!"

* * *

Knight didn't know how long he's been out but when he came to he found himself plopped on one of the tables. He couldn't understand why his whole body was aching and when he tried to get up the pain came surging all at once, which was strange because he didn't remember fighting with anyone earlier.

It's probably because the red-head monster dragged him recklessly all the way back to the guild with a wailing baby in her arms. If only he knew how many times she dropped him on the stone-hard ground, or the times she carried him on her back and smacked his head against all the hard edges at every turn. It wasn't her fault though, when Knight fainted for some reason Erza didn't understand, Imitre just disappeared. It's like she just vanished into thin air, which left the S-Class mage no choice but lug the boy like a sack of potatoes all the way back to the guild. Now he's whole body was throbbing from pain and he didn't even know why.

"Good, you're awake!" Mira slipped him a bowl of broth and helped him sit.

Knight noticed colorful heads leaning over around a table. He asked Mira what the Fairy Tail ladies were up to when a cute little chuckle answered his question. He almost spilled the hot bowl of soup over the barmaid, who chose to sit beside him. He rushed over the table where the ladies were giggling like schoolgirls. Knight thought his spirit left his body for a moment. So he wasn't dreaming at all. There, in front of him, sitting on a saggy blanket, cladded in white diapers and clearly, enjoying the attention was undeniably a real-life infant. When the little baby saw Knight, she crawled over to the end of the table where he was nearest and extended her meaty little arms toward. Everybody around the table waited for the young mage's next move. He felt uncomfortable under the ladies' expectant gaze plus the fact that he had no absolute idea what little Ultear wanted from him.

"I think she wants you to carry her." Mira moved beside him and whispered, her smiling eyes still glued on the baby.

The demon-summoner hesitantly lifted the little life off the table and raised her as far from him as possible. Macao and Wakaba snorted at the way the girls giggled at the young mage who held the baby like it was a bomb about to explode any minute.

"He doesn't even know what he's doing."

"When you got a face and a body like that, you can get away with anything." Macao and Wakaba just continued gulping down their sorrow with more booze.

Natsu and Gray just arrived back at the guild from a five day mission. The fire dragon slayer immediately felt abandoned when none of the girls welcomed them.

"Huh?" He scratched his head. Natsu searched for Lucy, who usually approached them first, and found her in a circle with the other girls.

"What's going on?"

"Gray-sama!"

Gray immediately regretted asking when a certain bluenette rushed over to him and dragged him towards the crowding mages, much to his opposition. Natsu, curiously followed behind them.

The two rivals, who just came from a tiring job together, almost jumped out of their skins. The picture of Knight Van Cartier holding up an actual baby knocked the two boys off their socks.

"You had a baby while we're gone?!" Natsu pointed an accusing finger at Knight.

Lucy tore herself from the group and dragged Natsu and Gray to a nearby table. She told them what Erza told her, like how she did the whole day when anyone came to ask. Juvia joined them, not letting her love rival alone with her Gray-sama.

Unexplainable emotions rushed through Gray as Lucy relayed the story. He tried to remember everything about that day which he thought was only a dream. His master's daughter sacrificed herself, helping more than just Gray.

The ice mage walked over the table where the fuss had already died down. Only Knight and Mira were left tending to the baby. He sat in front of the little one still playing with Knight's finger. Little Ultear, as if recognizing one of her mother's pupil, turned to him.

"Hey, I don't know if you can even understand what I'm saying but because of you I'm still alive. So, thank you." He ended in a soft voice.

Little Ultear just looked at Gray, looked at him intently and, as though she understood, the former time-arc mage hang her head on the side and broke into the widest grin anyone had ever seen.

* * *

Erza came back later that day bearing bad news. She went to see Porlyusica for the medicine that could help with their problem. The medicinal advisor found one alright but it would not be ready in three days.

"Three days!?" That wasn't enough for the demon-summoner. "Then what are we gonna do with her then?"

"Alzack and Bisca are still on a job." Lucy said dejectedly.

Their eyes landed on the little life gnawing on the blanket she was sitting at, realizing the problem.

"Then, we'll take turns taking care of her. Until, Alzack and Bisca or the cure, comes."

Juvia, and only Juvia, saw an opportunity in this mess. She immediately grabbed Gray and dragged him out of the guild along with little Ultear.

"No problem. Gray-sama and Juvia will take care of the baby." She announced excitedly with that familiar glimmer shining in her eyes. Gray, realizing it a second late, protested yet nothing could deter the water-mage's determination.

Juvia and Gray collapsed on the table, sporting the darkest circle anyone had ever seen under their tired eyes. The ice-mage buried his head in his arms over the table, murmuring _'need sleep'_ then bolted upright on the slightest noise. Juvia kept saying _'must endure for Gray-sama'_ like a mantra. It's been three days yet the cure never came and although the young water-mage was happy to share the responsibility with her Gray-sama, a woman could only take a lot. (No pun intended.)

Opposite the two sleep-deprived mages were the other sleep-deprived mages. Fairy Tail's strongest team could easily beat the hell out of all the guilds combined. Heck, they could even single-handedly destroy a town yet keeping their eyes wide open proved to be a struggle this time.

Lucy felt her bones turn to jelly. She's so tired she didn't have the energy to even lift a finger. She didn't know how it happened, how she was dragged into another mess, but she just came home one day with her team and Juvia cramped inside her little apartment. She remembered their conversation the first night.

_"Gray-sama can't stay at the dormitory."_

_"Then what the hell is Natsu and Happy doing here?"_

_"We'll take turns watching the baby so it's better that they stay here." _

_Lucy froze when she heard the requip mage explained from behind. Having Erza around could be really helpful but mostly she's just destructive. And Lucy's fears came to life when Erza's taking-care-of-the-baby tactics left her a long list of damages to her apartment. _

_When little Ultear couldn't stop crying no matter what the others did, Erza had the greatest idea of putting up a swords show just for the baby, which the others strongly objected. _

_"Ultear is one of the most powerful female mages of her time. She will enjoy this kind of entertainment." The determined S-class mage defended._

_Erza had Gray, who lost his clothes along the argument, on a spinning wheel. The others didn't even know where it came from. In a blink of an eye, Erza was wearing a tall white hat which looked like she could take a bunny out of it, a white tuxedo jacket with tails extending until the back of her knee, a red, shiny bow, sequined underwear and a matching cowboy boots. She put Lucy and Juvia on a glittery bunny suit and gave the celestial mage a microphone to commentate. The water-mage__, who blushed furiously because of her skimpy outfit, stood next to the wheel and spun it. To her horror, and Gray's great terror, Erza started summoning her swords and throwing them at the spinning ice-mage, who looked like he was about to vomit. The swords formed the outline of Gray's half-naked body, not missing a single spot. (Problem was, only a few of the swords stuck on the wheel and the others, well, they were everywhere.) She then turned to where the baby was with a proud showman look. Little Ultear stared at her for a second with her big, watery eyes before bursting into another howl that woke up the entire neighborhood. _

_Erza, being the competitive woman that she was, refused to call Mira who was undeniably the only one who had any maternal instinct among them__ but when they couldn't get the baby to stop crying, she finally agreed and hid in a corner to mourn her loss. Mirajane and Lisanna hurried over, leaving Elfman behind knowing he would be of no help. Turned out, little Ultear was just hungry._

_Babies, however, are shady little creatures. When the whole team were finally asleep, all dead to the world, little Ultear decided to throw a little tantrum._

_"Don't tell me she's hungry again. She just finished the whole bottle!" Gray whined._

_"Maybe she has Natsu-san's appetite." Juvia giggled._

_"What's that smell?" Natsu wrinkled his nose, crawled around the living room to look for the source of the offensive odor. The others started to smell it too. His keen sense of smell led him to the baby who was so red from crying._

_"It's her!"_

_Mirajane, who decided to stay the night, walked over to where the silly youngsters were. She asked Erza for the diapers they brought with them from town and started changing the baby expertly._

_"Wow, Mira-san is really good at this." Juvia gawked, not blinking an eye in case she missed something from Mira's ministrations. The other girls also watched in amusement while the guys tried so hard to get away from the scene. Erza grabbed Natsu and Gray from the collar and told them to put away the dirty diaper. _

_"Where is Knight? How come he doesn't have to deal with this?" Natsu held the wrapped-up dirty cloth as far away from him as possible, his finger under his nose._

_"Knight-sama said he doesn't want to stay in a woman's apartment." Gray and Natsu scowled inwardly. Erza's always too lax with Knight._

_"There, that should do it."_

_Little Ultear was now chuckling, happy to be out of her uncomfortable situation earlier. These cheerful laugh spread through-out the room as fast as rumors did but the smiles quickly vanished as they realized another impending problem – how to make her fall asleep, again._

_Little Ultear watched excitedly at swords jumping over her head. The others were slumped on Lucy's furniture, waiting for her to finally hit the sheets. She clapped her uncoordinated, chubby hands enthusiastically at every sword that successfully jumped over the other side. Natsu kept her warm with his fire while the others struggled to keep their eyes open. (If one of them started to doze off, the little baby would threaten to start another bawl.)_

_"Er... Erza, I think that's dangerous."_

_But if Erza tries to hide away the swords, Ultear would start the torturous crying. Even if the swords almost sliced her to pieces when Erza accidentally slipped off. So they tried a lot of things, more safe things. Mira and Lisanna played around with their transfiguration magic, which were really cute but not enough for little Ultear. Lucy tried making funny faces and Natsu, who thought he could do it better, took over, only scaring the baby to cry again. In the end, they gave up on their fruitless attempts and let Erza's swords lull the baby to sleep. When little Ultear finally dozed off, the team of six celebrated with a two-hour slumber._

Porlyusica walked in the guild, sadly, bearing bad news.

"The potion won't be ready, I'm afraid. I'm having problems locating some of the ingredients."

Erza, who just snapped out of her trance, stormed off to where Knight was. She grabbed him by the collar and fixed him the murderous glare the requip mage was infamously known for.

"Fix. This."

* * *

Author's Note

* * *

Heya! Sorry this chap is a little too long compared to the first two. I honestly don't know how that happened. I'm glad you guys are still reading this. I'm taking a break from my other fic The Vampire Tales since it's so exhausting to write. Not to mention I divulged on a genre I am not good at. Anyways, hope you guys appreciate it. Please excuse the shameless advertising.

Thanks to you guys who keep following and reviewing this fic.

To **mgaa**, miss you ate. Oo nga, hahaha. Gusto ko kasi gumawa ng fic na may baby at kung ano ang gagawin ng mga members.

To **Yuki Loxar**, hi! Well, yeah I see your point. I will try to put in details for Knight here as much as I can so that you guys can know him better. :)

Other Stories by Author

**The Vampire Tales **(Multi-chaptered)

When a thousand year old treaty binds a teenage vampire with a princess disease to marry into a race she hates with all her guts, will this bring peace or ensue a war it ought to prevent?

**Horror House of Opportunities **(One-Shot)

Erza decided to enlist everyone, against their own will, to do her horror booth for Halloween. Juvia takes this opportunity to set her plan in motion: Operation Get Gray-sama to Fall in Love with Juvia.

**Christmas Makes **(Two-Shots Holiday Special)

a Juvia crazy.

We all know she always was, and she never takes a break even for the Holidays.

a Gray unlikely.

Well, the Christmas spirit finally hit the ice-mage.

See how this season and its traditions bring the best and worst out of the Fairy Tail mages.

**The Midnight Madness **(New Year Special)

Juvia's on her longest-named mission yet. Operation: Make Gray-sama stay with Juvia the whole night, kiss Juvia when the clock strikes at twelve and eventually fall in love with Juvia.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Fairy Tail, its characters and in no way associated to the franchise. Any circumstances found in this story are fictional. Fairy Tail rights reserved to Hiro Mashima, creator and illustrator.

Don't forget to leave reviews!

* * *

**For the Happiness You Lost **Chapter 4

* * *

**PREVIOUSLY:**

Erza Scarlet dragged her entire team into a night full of broken furniture, flying swords, dirty diapers and an entertainment very inappropriate for young eyes. The best phrase to describe their night was biting off more than they could chew because the following morning when they went back to the guild lifting a finger proved to be a struggle. With the aging potion still too far from their hands, Erza was left no choice but to force his comrade to find a solution.

* * *

Knight tore his bored gaze away from the half-finished blue sky Bolognese and to the woman gripping at his collar. He studied her for a second and considered the S-class mage who was giving him a threatening glare. The dark circles under her eyes just emphasized the deadly look she was giving him.

"Fix it. Now." There was a sound of finality in her words.

The aggravated new member pushed Erza's hands away, stood up his chair and tried to flatten the crease on his perfectly ironed coat.

"Alright. I will look for those ingredients." He spoke casually as he made his way towards the table where little Ultear was enjoying herself playing around his dead-tired comrades. When the toddler on top of the table saw the familiar tall blonde approaching her, she immediately crawled towards the end of it. Knight caught her before she actually fell off.

"Papa!" said Ultear with an immeasurable excitement.

"EH? PAPA?!"

Knight van Cartier, twenty-one years old, never imagined himself fathering a child this early. He almost dropped baby Ultear in shock.

"Wahaha. He called you Papa!" Regaining his energy, the cherry-haired Natsu rose from his seat and began teasing Knight. He hit the younger mage in response.

"That hurts, Blondie! Wanna go at it?" Natsu challenged. It seemed like Knight was ready to heed his childish antic only to be stopped by the agonized and obviously pissed off Erza.

"ENOUGH!"

"Fine, fine." Knight walked away casually, secretly scared of what Erza might do to him if he stayed. "Just give me the list of the missing ingredients." He turned to Fairy Tail's medical expert.

"You're bringing the baby too. It's your turn to take care of her." The demon-summoner decided not to fight Erza with the new order. As much as he was happy that she looked like one of those ugly, rotting creatures who walked around mindlessly (to put it plainly, like a zombie), he was sure what the requip mage was capable of. Especially that she was lacking sleep and obviously having a bad day.

"Erza-san…" Juvia called out. "This is still considered a mission so Knight-sama cannot go alone."

"Then you're coming with me Rain Woman."

"EEP!"

* * *

Juvia could not understand. First, she was at the guild slumped on a table like a dead woman, with the rest of her friends who pulled an all-nighter watching over Ultear. Now, she was sitting opposite the new Fairy Tail recruit in a three-hour train ride. How it all happened, she could not understand.

"Oi, Juvia."

Juvia bolted up, surprised.

"YES KNIGHT-SAMA?!" She responded in an unnaturally ecstatic manner. The water-mage became all jumpy after losing too much sleep because of Ultear. She apologized after seeing the confusion registered on Knight's face.

"You can sleep through the entire ride if you're tired."

The water-mage sheepishly thanked him. The next thing she knew Knight had already moved over to where she was seated. He pulled her sleepy head to lean against his shoulder. Juvia suddenly felt a chaos in her chest. Both her heart and breathing were out of norm. When she finally realized the symptoms, she quickly dashed over to the opposite seat.

"Ju…Juvia is… is… f-f-fine here… K-K-Knight-sama." Juvia stuttered, feeling like she was betraying her Gray-sama.

"Ah. Is that so?"

Knight made sure he sounded as casual as possible, even letting himself a small smile as he spoke.

* * *

Juvia bumped her head against the window-glass. She rubbed her sleepy eyes then scanned her environment. She was still on the train and traveling. There were no noise other than the deep sound of the train's wheels hitting against the railway and a soft, indistinct chatters. Her eyes scanned the roomful of other travelers and stopped at the group of women chuckling in excitement, not too far from where she was seated. She noticed the reason for their exuberant atmosphere and almost jumped out of her skin when she realized that the cause was little Ultear. Knight picked that moment to walk out of the comfort room.

"Knight-sama left Ultear with strangers?" She was almost mortified.

Knight was just wiping his hands clean when he heard Juvia. He addressed her with a confused look and turned to where she was pointing her finger at – to the giggly group of women in their fifties who the clueless boy entrusted the baby with when he needed to attend to his necessities.

"They know what they're doing." He shrugged.

Knight got the chills when little Ultear called out to him as _'Papa'_ and pointed to him. He just smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, your Papa is back." One of the women said and carefully handed over the excited Ultear to the blushing blonde.

"Such a cute, young couple."

"EH?!" Juvia tried to deny the accusations, even flailing her hands comically. The middle-aged women just giggled at her way of doing it and actually found it cute. Even thinking she was just being too shy about it.

The wheels of the train screeched and pulled to a sudden stop. The light-weighted furniture in the moving carts tossed around the room. The passengers held on to their couches to keep their balance. Juvia was not able to grab on to something and her inertia sent her flying to the other side of the room. Good thing Knight was able to grab her before she smashed at the end of the cart.

They felt the floor vibrating before a big explosion dazed and deafened the two Fairy Tail mages. The young, blonde mage felt his protective instinct kick in. He willed himself to recover quickly before covering Juvia and little Ultear with his body, blocking a few flying debris from hitting the two. The demon-summoner felt the floor shake again, but no blasting noise came after. He turned to where the explosion left a big gap on the train's cart and saw a number of men in black habits enter. Their robes bore a cross-shaped crest familiar to the young mage and he realized these were the same people who used some dirty tactics to _persuade_ him to join their guild.

"You just don't give up, do you?"

The men wore white porcelain masks and one of them stepped forward and spoke through it, giving the words a sinister feel. "If you do not wish to endanger anyone else in here, then come with us peacefully."

Knight's response was a humorless chuckle. He was about preparing his summoning stance when Juvia beat him to it. From behind him, he heard her name her attack.

"Water Slicer!"

But the high-pressured, water blades dissolved before they even reached the opponents.

"Sorry Knight-sama. Juvia has not yet recovered from her lack of sleep."

Without turning to face the humiliated water-mage, Knight ordered her to take Ultear and the rest of the passengers to safety, saying after that he would take care of the situation. Juvia followed his order with urgency and gathered the others behind the blond mage. He placed a round magical sphere around Juvia and the others, the same one he used to concentrate the effects of the Lost Ages magic within its bounds. That way, whatever magic would be released from him or his attackers would not reach the people inside the sphere.

Knight van Cartier was once again surrounded by a whirlpool of intense magic. His golden hair swayed along the strong force that surrounded him. A glowing circle formed around the boy before he began his summoning.

"I call upon the demon of eternal darkness: Oblivion!"

"Knight-sama."

A girl around the height of Juvia appeared out-of-nowhere and bowed before the blonde mage. Her long, silky raven hair framed Oblivion's beautiful face that wore a neutral expression same as her master. Her black traditional Kimono with violet accents gave off a serious and intimidating air around her.

Knight and his attackers engaged in a standoff. The Fairy Tail mage was greatly outnumbered and Juvia felt the need to help him out. She tried to get out of the safety sphere but her efforts were in vain. The men in black habits, members of the Knights Templar, began their first strike. They extended their hands collectively towards the blonde mage and released hundreds of silver daggers simultaneously. That was their strategy: to use their number against him. Some of the daggers bounced against the sphere that the demon-summoner placed on the innocent passengers and dropped to the floor. Oblivion formed a round black sphere with some sort of purple lightning charge surrounding it. It literally ate all of the silver daggers that came its way.

"My turn."

Knight sent a glance to his demon. Oblivion read the signal and nodded. With the gentle and elegant move of her left hand, the black sphere dispersed into multiple smaller versions of her earlier black sphere. They flew towards the members of the Knights Templar and released the assailant's own daggers back to them.

Knight van Cartier just wiped out the entire Knights Templar members by himself. But the fight was far from over. A slow clapping sound echoed inside the cart. Behind the piled bodies of fallen soldiers, a lone man materialized.

"Of course, I did not expect Knight van Cartier to go down that easily."

The mysterious man, donning an elegant cape that also bore the Knights Templar's crest, walked towards him with a taunting smirk. His eyes were green and his hair was a disheveled raven. His boyish smile was full of confidence that annoyed the demon-summoner.

"Now, let's stop playing games."

The mysterious man, who Knight assumed the leader of the capture party, spread out his hands just like what the other members of his guild did and a number of shining daggers attacked the blonde mage. When Knight thought Oblivion's black spheres would catch them, he thought wrong. The shining daggers neutralized the black spheres when they hit and the latter dissolved upon contact.

"Knight-sama!"

A wave of terror overwhelmed Juvia when she saw the shining daggers hit her comrade. Oblivion disappeared when Knight fell on the ground and cried out of pain. The protective sphere began to wane and flicker out. Juvia wanted to use this chance to help with the fight but before she could the demon-summoner, with the safety of the innocent passengers as his priority, used his energy to reinforce the shield. The water-mage screamed at him, her eyes watering with unspent tears, ordering him to let her out to help. The fallen mage ignored her cries and pushed himself up back to his feet.

"You're right. Let's stop playing games."

A new wave of determination shone on Knight's blue eyes. The way his strong gaze was filled with anger told the mysterious man that the easy round had long been over.

"I summon you, Demon of the Thousand Faces: Imitre and Demon Secret Art: Agrand!"

"Hai! Knight-sama." The girls greeted in unison.

Juvia never knew Knight could summon two demons at a time. She couldn't believe her eyes when a girl the height of Wendy and another with a cherry colored hair appeared before the demon-summoner. The leader of the Knights Templar, recognizing the progress in his target's powers, wasted no time and began his attack. It took Knight by surprise that when his attacker's left hand glided forward, instead of sending daggers his way, the mysterious man released hundreds of magical grenade. The purple-haired girl, who Juvia assumed to be Imitre, jumped in front of him to block the attack with an ice-shield familiar with the water-mage.

"Gray-sama's magic?"

The magical grenade exploded upon contact with the shield and was powerful enough to break the ice.

Juvia recognized this kind of magic. Just like one of Lucy's celestial spirits, Gemini, Imitre could mimic the abilities of others but with the addition of not needing to assume their physical appearances. But to what extent could the imitation demon copy one's magic capabilities? She did not know. Her attention was pulled by the sudden appearance of Imitre in possession of a long silver sword replicating one of Erza Scarlet's.

"And Erza-san's too?"

Knight did not need to voice out the magic he wanted to reproduce. He shared a telepathic sense with his demons so the latter would be able to take action without consulting their master, just by reading his thoughts. The demon-summoner completed his combination attack with Agrand's Amplify Magic.

"Amplify Magic: Excelsior!"

A group of swords began to circle the imitation demon and spun in a disc formation. With the requip mage's infamous attack command, the blades launched at the enemy.

"Dance, Titania's blades."

Only the sound of the mystery man's howling of defeat could be heard in the train and Juvia almost sympathized with him. The magical protective sphere had vanished and the people inside it were freed. The demon-summoner took measured steps towards the defeated mystery man. The latter lied on his stomach, too wounded to move but when he saw Knight a few inches from him, he feared for his life.

"Knight-sama!" Juvia called, trying to stop Knight from taking anymore action against the fallen man.

The mystery man slowly extended his hand to grab on the Fairy Tail mage. He looked up to the victor; a croaked plea for mercy escaped his cracked lips. But Knight van Cartier did not have any expression on his face. No remorse, no mercy. He stared down at his dishonored attacker and through the silence, the mystery man braced for his impending fate.

"What is your name?" Knight asked.

"S-S-Seneschal."

"Seneschal, make sure you get all of your comrades to seek medical attention."

Tears brimmed on the eyes of the Knight Templars' commander. When the demon-summoner turned to leave, he hugged his departing foot and clung to him.

"Thank you my Lord! You are very kind!"

"Get off me!"

* * *

There was still sunlight, albeit low, when Knight and Juvia returned to Magnolia. They were on foot, heading to Porlyusica's house as per Erza's instructions. The new member of the guild carried with him the asleep little toddler while Fairy Tail's water-mage lagged behind, wallowing in her own sorrow. Juvia hanged her head low in both shame and disappointment for not being useful during the fight in the train. Knight's reassuring words had not effect to her at all.

"Juvia, I told you it's alright. You were kind of out of it and you're tired."

"But what if it was Gray-sama? How can Juvia protect her beloved if she cannot protect even Knight-sama?"

_Of course she was thinking about that._ Knight thought.

"Like I said, you were out of it."

The demon-summoner noticed how the weather paralleled with Juvia's mood. The dark clouds rolled in on them and he told the water-mage to hurry. It was probably because of the atmosphere or the long way back that made the golden-haired boy appreciate the extra miles he had to take with his baby-sitter, Erza Scarlet, when coming back from a job. The silly and petty banters and the endless disagreements with the impatient woman made it non-monotonous. And seeing her twitch a nerve at his defiance was an added bonus.

Knight van Cartier stopped dead in his tracks and the sulking mage, so preoccupied of her internal battle, slammed against his back.

"Is Knight-sama alright?" Juvia asked, nursing her throbbing forehead. She didn't receive any reply from her companion and rushed in front of him to check.

"Knight-sama?" She nudged but the guy didn't budge. Juvia even flailed her hands in front of him to get his attention but he was frozen, transfixed. His face was pulled in an expression of both shock and disbelief.

The boy with the golden hair, who exuded regal air, could not believe the realization dawning upon him. Erza Scarlet? A woman who did not know the concept of mercy, who was as reckless as the pink-haired, idiot Natsu, who had no finesse, refinement or anything of the high-class maidens he was used to had grown on him.

"Geez! What took you so long?"

Knight looked for the owner of the voice and the maiden of his thoughts materialized in front of him. The rest of the team also appeared behind the requip mage simultaneously. He stopped the smile that almost formed on his lips and maintained it in a straight line. He also dismissed the warmth he suddenly felt in his chest and turned away from the group to hide his burning cheeks.

"Lucy and I could have been back in no time." The celestial mage hit the back of Natsu's head.

"That's not even possible with you around."

"It's Juvia's fault." Juvia said, disheartened.

"We got caught up." The new member did not like pointing fingers and most definitely did not want Juvia to take the full blame.

"Caught up with what?"

The voice came from the raven-haired boy at the furthest back of their circle. Gray made sure he sounded as casual and uninterested as possible.

"Something."

There was an edge to the demon-summoner's voice. To an outsider, it sounded like he was challenging the ice-mage and wanting to end the conversation with him at the same time. The silence that dawned upon them was filled with tension. Tension broken by a joyful laugh of a little angel.

Little Ultear had awoken from her great slumber and was already stirring in Knight's arms. She turned to the requip mage and extended her chubby little arms towards her in an open embrace.

"Mama!"

There was a collective gasp. Natsu popped out-of-nowhere, his eyes as big as saucers, and a tone with much accusation. "She called you mama!"

Albeit being mortified of the implications, Erza quickly recovered from her state of shock, put a fist on top Natsu's head and masked her blush with an angry expression. She then walked over to the equally surprised blonde mage and heeded Ultear's call.

"She didn't even deny it." Natsu nursed the bump on top of his head, care of Titania, while Lucy and the rest of his team picked up their jaws from the ground.

"Aye!"

* * *

Erza nestled little Ultear against her body and led the group to Porlyusica's house. It was rather a silent walk as the tension between Knight and Gray, although minimal, still hanged in the air. Little Ultear entertained herself by giggling at his _'Papa'_ who walked behind Erza. Occasionally reaching out to him and hiding her chubby hands away when he held out to her. It became an entertaining game to Ultear and a good distraction for the team.

When they reached the medicinal advisor's house she didn't invite them in. Instead, after taking the ingredients from Knight, Porlyusica slammed the door on his face. The old woman did not like humans that much and Lucy advised the new member not to take it personally. When she opened her door again, she shoved the newly brewed potion to their faces.

"Now stop disturbing me, you brats!" She slammed the door to their faces again.

Erza placed little Ultear on a table which conveniently happened to be there. She took the lavender-colored potion and let the uncoordinated toddler drink directly from the glass. Then, the requip mage backed-off, giving the drink sometime to work its aging magic. The team waited with anticipation. They heard her cute little chuckle through the white smog that started to envelop the little tot.

When the smog finally cleared up, seven jaws dropped. Seven pairs of eyes grew wide in shock. The rest of them were struck dumb while only Natsu voiced out what they were all thinking.

"Ah… a… a kid?!"

* * *

Author's Note

* * *

Waiting for your reviews! :)


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